There are four beds in the ward, but the other three are empty. Only on one of the beds by the window lies a young girl with long dark hair that is softly and spectacularly spread out on the pillows, like a fairy tale. Like the Rapunzel in the story, wrapping the slender and thin body, the strength and fragility became more and more incongruous, and the pearl white face was covered with an unhealthy luster.
The sound of opening the door of the ward did not attract any attention to her. She just quietly looked at the pale blue sky outside the window. The sparse sunlight lingered on the pale lips, and a faint vitality could be seen faintly. It was flowing slowly, but it was lifeless.
Her name is Hazel-Cross, only fifteen years old, suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as "ALS", which is one of the cruelest conditions Renly has ever seen.
The patient will gradually lose control of his own muscles, and the motor nerves will eventually atrophy completely, which is no different from general paralysis, and even affects basic bodily functions such as eating, breathing, and speaking, but because this disease does not affect sensory nerves, The patient's intelligence, memory, and five senses will not be damaged in any way. In other words, the patient can only watch as he loses control bit by bit and goes to death step by step, but there is nothing he can do.
The whole process is slow and long, and the pain is gradually superimposed, making every day a torment. Generally, patients live only two to five years after the onset of the disease. So far, there is still no effective treatment, and even delaying the disease is extremely difficult. In 2014, the "Ice Bucket Challenge" that swept the global Internet was an activity started to attract more people's attention to ALS.
Heather was the first patient Renly looked after at Mount Sinai Hospital.
They got along very well at that time, and Heather, who had just learned that he was ill, always maintained a positive attitude; but then Renly left for more than half a year because of filming, and when he came back again, Heather has become reticent, and also Refused to talk to Renly, ignoring Renly's presence every time.
Renly knew that this was Heather protesting her way.
"The weather in New York has rarely been so bright recently. It has been sunny for a week in a row. I almost doubt that this is New York anymore." 's record, have you listened to it? I told you that Britpop of the 1960s was the real classic. Pick a band at random, and it's memorable. If you like it, next week I brought you Joy-Divison's first album, which was four songs, experimental, but fun, and it represented the beginnings of punk in the '70s."
Renly seemed to be muttering and entertaining herself, babbling on and on, and occasionally glancing at Heather, she would find that she was still unresponsive, staring out the window as if there was nothing in the room at all. Renly this guy.
Seeing Heather's childish behavior, Renly couldn't help but smile, sat down on the hospital bed next to him, and took out the kite-making materials from his backpack. Spring has come recently, and the wind in Manhattan is very strong, which is the season for kite flying. Renly has already processed the materials at home last week, and today only needs to complete the final assembly part.
"Renly! Renly!" The shouts from outside the ward came from far and near, and when they reached the door, they stopped, and a small head cautiously poked in through the crack of the door. Who, he showed a big smile and said softly, "I've finished the medicine!" He puffed out his chest and looked proud, waiting for Renly's praise.
Renly gave him a thumbs up, which made Alex shake his head proudly, but then his eyes fell on Heather, but Alex couldn't help but hesitate, worried that his actions would alarm Heather.
small book booth
Renly rubbed the little guy's head with his big hands, "Do you want to join in?" Alex's attention was immediately attracted, and he nodded vigorously. Renly took out a stack of cut drawing paper from his backpack, "You draw on it, draw whatever comes to your mind, and then we make the tail of the kite, long, long..."
Alex didn't take the paintbrush immediately, but thought for a while and asked seriously, "So it's like a Chinese/Guolong?"
Renly raised his eyebrows and laughed, "Of course, why not."
After getting a positive answer, Alex took the paintbrush with a smile on his face, then propped his chin very seriously, and began to think hard. Renly couldn't help but laugh, "What are you doing?"
"I'm thinking about what I want to paint. I can't just scribble on it." That natural appearance made Renly dumbfounded, nodded hesitantly, and said solemnly, "Yes, of course." And then Renly didn't forget to clench his fist to cheer for Alex.
Looking at Alex's serious appearance, it was as if he was painting for an international competition. This makes Renly a little envious. Many times, children are the purest, most persistent, and simplest group of people. Maybe their behavior seems a little naive, and they always waste time on "unnecessary" things, but it is precisely It is this kind of childish loss that makes adults lose the source of happiness.
Involuntarily, Renly took the camera out of his backpack, pointed it at Alex, and pressed the shutter. The experience of the last life has taught Renly to cherish every moment of life.
A glance came from behind, and Renly looked up to see the afterimage of Heather hurriedly turning her head, her smooth hair sliding like a waterfall, reflecting the flow of light and shadow, revealing her small movements. The corners of Renly's mouth rose involuntarily, and he picked up the camera and pointed it at Heather, recording the moment again.
Hearing the "click", Heather turned her head sharply, glared angrily, and scolded, "What are you doing!"
Renly didn't panic at all, checked the effect of the shot just now, and answered calmly, "I'm taking a picture."
Such an answer made Heather choked, "Deleted! Don't you know that it's rude to take pictures without the consent of the person concerned? If I wanted to, I could even sue you in court!" "
Renly raised his head and gave Heather a shallow smile, "I know." This made the angry flames in Heather's pupils grow hotter and blazing. Renly shook the camera in his hand, "If you don't like it, you can come over and delete it yourself, or even smash the camera." Then, he put the camera on the clean white sheet, and listened to the picture. Respectful expression.
Heather gritted his teeth, wishing he could bite Renly's neck directly, "You know..." The words after that came to an abrupt end. With the passage of time, Heather's symptoms became more and more obvious, and it was now difficult for her to walk. This is also the reason why she is always lying in/on the hospital bed and is reluctant to get down and move around.
Renly couldn't understand Heather's current mood, but he knew that Heather would regret it in the future. Because at least she can still walk now, it's just more inconvenient, and when she really can't walk, time will be irreversible.
"Each of us is making choices and paying for our choices." Renly shrugged, he didn't directly tell Heather the big truth, because they all understood these truths, but the actual actions were not so simple, those The so-called truth is just another kind of torture for the patient.
After speaking, Renly ignored Heather, but lowered his head and continued to work on the kite in his hand.
Heather glared at Renly angrily, her chest was surging with generosity that she couldn't swallow, but she couldn't let it out. She could only breathe heavily, her chest rising and falling. She clenched her fists, wanted to sit up, and punched Renly hard, but... After all, she turned her head and looked out the window again, letting the silence in the ward begin to permeate again.
After a while, Heather even forgot about the passage of time, but this quietness made her restless mood gradually calm down. It seemed that time was no longer so boring or so difficult, even the unchanging scenery outside the window. Transformed into different colors.
Suddenly, Alex's uncontrollably cheerful voice came over, "It's done! It's done!" Heather used all her strength to not turn her head, and then she heard Renly calmly say He responded, "Before a kite flies into the sky, it can't be called a kite, how about it, do you want to be the one who makes it come alive?"
"I think, I think!" Alex shouted impatiently, followed by a series of running noises that faded away and disappeared.
Heather was stunned. That's all? Didn't Renly invite her too? Without even saying hello? No, Renly must still be in the room, waiting for her to turn around, to admit defeat, she's not that stupid! In the patient contest, she never worried that she would fail, so let's see who bows his head first!
Unconsciously, Heather clenched his fists and forced himself to keep going, not to look back, otherwise he would admit defeat.
The passage of time began to become clear, as if the sound of the hourglass slowly falling could be heard, but the silence in the ward made Heather feel a little uneasy. It was the same quiet, but at this moment Heather felt a thin layer of chill covering her skin.
"Heather!" A voice came from behind, which shocked Heather, but before the joy in her heart rose, she realized that the calling voice was not Renly, because within sight, Lanly Li took Alex to the downstairs, and there were a group of little guys next to him, like a hen with chickens.
"Heather?" the voice behind him called out again, and Heather let out a long sigh of relief, while the disappointment in his heart was quietly surging, but there was an indescribable... eagerness, "The nurse just told me that your performance today Excellent!"
Heather lowered her eyes, covered her emotions, turned her head, and twitched the corners of her mouth at the person who came, showing a weak smile, "Jennifer, good afternoon."
Jennifer Lawrence also showed a big smile, "Good afternoon."